'The Sinner' Renewed for Season 2 at USA Network

Courtesy of USA Network

'The Sinner'

Bill Pullman will return as star of the Jessica Biel-produced anthology.

USA Network is returning to The Sinner.

The NBCUniversal-owned cable network has renewed the Jessica Biel-produced anthology for a second season. Star Bill Pullman will return to reprise his role as Detective Harry Ambrose in the sophomore run, which is expected to air in the summer. It's unclear if Biel, who earned a Golden Globe nomination for her role in the freshman season, will return for an onscreen role.

Season two will see Ambrose return to his hometown in rural New York to assess an unsettling and heart-wrenching crime — parents murdered by their 11-year-old son, with no apparent motive. As Ambrose realizes there’s nothing ordinary about the boy or where he came from, the investigation pulls him into the hidden darkness of his hometown. He is pitted against those who will stop at nothing to protect its secrets — and a mysterious woman who proves to be a complicated, enigmatic piece to this haunting puzzle.

"The Sinner was a huge success for USA Network," Chris McCumber, president of entertainment networks at NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment, said Friday in a statement. “In our second season, we’ll follow Detective Ambrose as he tracks his newest 'why-dunnit,' while staying true to the unique, edge-of-your-seat storytelling that captivated audiences and critics alike.”

Season one of The Sinner averaged 1. 6 million viewers among the advertiser-coveted adults 18-49 demographic and 3.8 million total viewers. That was good enough for it to rank as the No. 1 new cable series of 2017. In addition to Biel, the series earned a Globe nomination for best limited series, as well as a pair of Critics' Choice mentions. The series was always intended to feature a closed-ended story built around Pullman's detective. Biel, who has fielded several broadcast pilot season offers, could return to reprise her season one role should the creative make sense. But for now, it's unclear if she will return beyond her role as executive producer on the Universal Cable Productions drama.

Derek Simonds will return as showrunner and exec produce alongside Biel and her UCP-based Iron Ocean banner topper Michelle Purple. Charlie Gogolak exec produces alongside Brad Winters. Antonio Campos, who helmed the first three episodes of season one, will return to direct the first two installments of The Sinner's sophomore run.

The Sinner joins a USA Network scripted roster that also includes Unsolved, Mr. Robot, Shooter, Queen of the South, The Purge, Colony, Suits and the latter's untitled spinoff.